The Role of Environmental Payments in Sustaining Farm Incomes: A Four Year Study of Farm Businesses in an Upland Area of the UK

A representative sample of both participant and non-participant case study farms was examined over a three-year period in the Shropshire Hills Environmentally Sensitive Area of the UK from 1997 to 2000. The effects on farm business viability were monitored and results compared with two relevant sub samples of Farm Business Survey recorded farms. The study showed that farming profitability declined sharply over the study period but that participant case study farm profitability exceeded that of non-participants by an average of £4024 per year. This was attributable to a combination of factors which included larger average farm size, the ESA premium and more intensive farming operations. Subsidies received by both types of farms were almost totally on the "per head" basis and averaged £270 per hectare. Without these both classes of farms would have been highly unprofitable. The status of the ESA premium compared with these figures was an average of 4.5 percent of business turnover or £2358 per farm, well below that of headage based subsidies. Return on capital invested in land was consistently low, suggesting that even with these levels of subsidies the long-term future of these farms could be uncertain. The results achieved were consistent with those obtained from the Farm Business Survey data provided for the two relevant sub-samples.Farm Management,

Peer recognition of outstanding achievement towards UK agricultural progress

This Paper traces the history since its 1970 launch, operation and impacts of the scheme for peer recognition of outstanding contributions to agricultural progress within the UK. The Council for Awards (CARAS) is sponsored by the four national Royal Agricultural Societies (RAS) of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland andWales. CARAS awards Associateships (ARAgS) and Fellowships (FRAgS), under a Constitution reframed in 1984, revised in 1990. Potential Associates are invited to apply by National Panels in the four nations and required to provide a submission of their work to date, with two existing Fellows (FRAgS) to provide sponsor letters. Subject to satisfactory submission and sponsors’ letters, two Assessors are appointed from among existing Fellows to meet each candidate. The Assessors’ joint Report is then considered by a Moderator’s Panel of CARAS, which approves Associateships (ARAgS). Advancements to Fellowship (FRAgS) are conditional upon further outstanding contributions to UK agricultural progress based on citations to CARAS. The Paper reviews diverse benefits hypothesised for those thus recognised and some collective activities of members. It seeks to evaluate the impact of these awards in motivating excellence for UK agricultural progress and public benefit by analysis of responses from almost 600 recipients of the awards

The Role of Environmental Payments in Sustaining Farm Incomes: A Four Year Study of Farm Businesses in an Upland Area of the UK

A representative sample of both participant and non-participant case study farms was examined over a three-year period in the Shropshire Hills Environmentally Sensitive Area of the UK from 1997 to 2000. The effects on farm business viability were monitored and results compared with two relevant sub samples of Farm Business Survey recorded farms. The study showed that farming profitability declined sharply over the study period but that participant case study farm profitability exceeded that of non-participants by an average of £4024 per year. This was attributable to a combination of factors which included larger average farm size, the ESA premium and more intensive farming operations. Subsidies received by both types of farms were almost totally on the "per head" basis and averaged £270 per hectare. Without these both classes of farms would have been highly unprofitable. The status of the ESA premium compared with these figures was an average of 4.5 percent of business turnover or £2358 per farm, well below that of headage based subsidies. Return on capital invested in land was consistently low, suggesting that even with these levels of subsidies the long-term future of these farms could be uncertain. The results achieved were consistent with those obtained from the Farm Business Survey data provided for the two relevant sub-samples

Generation of an iPSC line from a Pontocerebellar Hypoplasia 1B patient harboring a homozygous c.395 A > C mutation in EXOSC3 along with a family matched control

Pontocerebellar Hypoplasia 1B (PCH1B) is a severe autosomal recessive neurological disorder that is associated with mutations in the exosome complex component RRP40 (EXOSC3) gene. We generated and characterized an iPSC line from an individual with PCH1B that harbors a recessive homozygous c.395 A > C mutation in EXOSC3 and a family matched control from the probands unaffected mother. Each iPSC line presents with normal morphology and karyotype and express high levels of pluripotent markers. UAZTi009-A and UAZTi011-A are capable of directed differentiation and can be used as a vital experimental tool to study the development of PCH1B. © 2022Open access journalThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

Antihypertensive drug treatment and susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection in human PSC-derived cardiomyocytes and primary endothelial cells

The pathogenicity of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been attributed to its ability to enter through the membrane-bound angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor. Therefore, it has been heavily speculated that angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) therapy may modulate SARS-CoV-2 infection. In this study, exposure of human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) and human endothelial cells (hECs) to SARS-CoV-2 identified significant differences in protein coding genes involved in immunity, viral response, and cardiomyocyte/endothelial structure. Specifically, transcriptome changes were identified in the tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interferon α/β, and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) (hPSC-CMs) as well as nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) (hECs) signaling pathways. However, pre-treatment of hPSC-CMs or hECs with two widely prescribed antihypertensive medications, losartan and lisinopril, did not affect the susceptibility of either cell type to SARS-CoV-2 infection. These findings demonstrate the toxic effects of SARS-CoV-2 in hPSC-CMs/hECs and, taken together with newly emerging multicenter trials, suggest that antihypertensive drug treatment alone does not alter SARS-CoV-2 infection. © 2021 The AuthorsOpen access journalThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]